Yuengling Just Became America's Biggest Brewery

D.G. Yuengling and Son is now the largest US-owned brewer that makes all of its beer in America.

How's that possible? Well, both Anheuser-Busch and MillerCoors are now foreign-owned, and Yuengling has now passed Sam Adams maker Boston Beer Co., according to new estimates from Beer Marketer's Insights (via AdAge).

Headquartered in Pottsville, Penn., Yuengling is now 8th in US market share with 2.5 million barrels (up 16.9% from last year).

There are two US-owned breweries that are larger, but they don't brew all their beer within the country (Pabst Brewing Co. outsources, and North American Breweries' big Labatt's brand is made in Canada).

At one time, the brand's success could have been attributed to its position as a hard-to-get brew. But with its rapid rise, things have changed. It started to advertise more aggressively, and marched the brand out west where it didn't have much recognition.

Do American consumers actually care that most of the big beer brands aren't US-owned anymore? Probably not, judging from the performance of brands like Budweiser and Bud Light, but it does give some insight as to how much of the US beer market is controlled by companies from abroad.